Josh Howard of the Dallas Mavericks made a comment at a chaity game while the national anthem was playing. He said that he did not need to participate in that exercise because "I am black." Immature, you bet. Unpatriotic, absolutely. Immature, yes. But there is a deeper issue here. First, we have never heard from Howard that he loves America, only that he is Black and that somehow seperates him. His comment shows a deeper issue. Why is it that many blacks feel they are different. Like their is a chip on their shoulder and they have a right to dishonor our country. I have read the history books and I know the journey of the black people and their struggle to acheive the American dream. In my opinion, their access to that dream is as open as most other Americans. I live in a fairly diverse community and I don't see other ethnic groups embrace the same "victim" attitude. Yes, young Howard has the right to express how he feels. God bless a country that allows those freedoms. Somehow we need to get our big wonderful diverse people closer to the same vision. We are all Americans, nomatter how we experience our citizenship. We can build a better America by respecting what we have and building new bridges. To some degree, we need to forget the past and move ahead!